


At Ijaa taab'echaaj'la

by CallistaGseran



Series: A Daughter's Quest [2]
Category: Star Wars Legends - All Media Types
Genre: Family Feels, Jedi Training (Star Wars), Mandalorian Culture
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-11
Updated: 2019-12-11
Packaged: 2021-02-18 11:27:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,952
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21760141
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CallistaGseran/pseuds/CallistaGseran
Summary: "To Honor the Departed". This is an incomplete story that follows after the events ofKe barjurir gar'ade, jagyc'ade kot'la a dalyc'ade. Marin continues her training and attempts to find some way to honor her father's memory. Co-authored by: Steffan Karrde.
Series: A Daughter's Quest [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1564138





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Star Wars and associated material contained within works produced or published by LucasFilm Ltd., or its subsidiaries remains the sole property, copyright, and trademark of said entities. No profit is being made from this work. All characters contained within this work are original (with the exception of appearances by some canon characters) and remain the intellectual property of their originating writers.
> 
> The Cataani people and all related information is the brainchild of Steffan Karrde. All characters used are used with the permission of their originating writer.
> 
> Mando'a language © Karen Traviss and LFL.
> 
> Star Wars © LFL.

Continued from _ Ke barjurir gar'ade, _ _ jagyc'ade kot'la a dalyc'ade kotla'shya _

_At Ijaa taab'echaaj'la_

To Honor the Departed

* * *

"We're going to try something else this morning," Andrea said as she and Marin were out in the grove that she normally used for her training. "At this point, I'd been focusing your training in Ataru...the fourth lightsaber form. Now we're going to start blending part of another form into your fighting style."

Marin was dressed this morning in loose brown trousers. Her tunic was one of the many that she'd found in her closet; this one a sky blue wrap style. She'd belted it with a sash of the same fabric of her trousers. Her face creased slightly in a frown, as she hadn't learned too much about the various forms. She tucked her braid behind her right ear. "What form will I be learning now?" she asked with a smile as she ran through a few Teras Kasi forms to loosen up.

"The name of this is Shien," her master said as she started to explain it. "It's one of two parts to the fifth form. It is centered around defense, like Soresu..the third form, but with more of the tactics and philosophy of Makashi...the second form...in a way that you use defensive moves, but more easily shift to the offense. It _is_ a more aggressive and requires more physical strength than the form I've been teaching you, so keep that in mind. "

Marin nodded, chewing her lower lip for a moment as she pondered that. _'More aggressive....'_ That brought forth memories of what had happened when she'd learned of Jarius' death. She'd barely kept control. She had, in fact, lost control for a time as she allowed her grief to take hold. Marin swallowed, pulling her attention back to the present. "I'll keep that in mind..." she said firmly."

"Good," Andrea told her. "We decided on Shien because it was designed against multiple opponents with blaster fire...something you will probably run into more. Later, we'll see about Djem So, the second part of the fifth form, that is meant more for an opponent with a lightsaber."

Marin nodded. "That makes sense. Especially if I take it as my duty to rid the galaxy of _Kyr'tsad_. I know it's something I can't do alone. But I feel its something that needs to be done... not only due to the threat they pose to everyone else, but to honor my father."

"Aye. Shien will work well with multiple opponents, as I said, but it might prove weaker against a single opponent, so you can shift to Djem So quickly. Combine them with the moves I've been showing you with Ataru, it should give you more flexibility in the open ground while improving your defenses in enclosed areas."

Marin responded with a smile. Now _there_ was something that she could use. She thought a moment and looked to Andrea before she unclipped Souvrin's saber and held it in her left hand unlit as she began to slowly run through the first few forms of Ataru. "I was thinking.... would there be a way to combine say, my Teras Kasi with the lightsaber form?"

"I have heard it possible," Andrea answered her. "There are cases where you can use hand-to-hand combat maneuvers during a duel. Your opponent during the challenge showed you that to a small extent. In extreme close quarters, Father, Dilan and even myself have resorted to hand-to-hand combat attacks in the middle of using the lightsaber. There are other examples of this too."

Marin raised an eyebrow and gestured for Andrea to continue. "I ask because I don't like feeling limited to only one weapon of type of defense."

"Not many others have either. Masters Myk Ron and Arie Dinn both still employ blasters, Arie also uses a tikki blade," Andrea said as they discussed it. "Father has employed different blades and thrown weapons in his fights."

She nodded, turning Souvrin's lightsaber over in her fingers as she pondered. "It just makes sense to use every skill you have. When we were on Galan.... I didn't even pull my training saber until I had no other choice. I kept to blasters."

"Wise decision," her master admitted to her. "The training sabers aren't designed to withstand multiple blocks of full power blasters. Speaking of which," she added as she motioned around them. "Since Shien focuses on blaster defense, there's a special aspect of it that may take you some time to learn. Its probably one that we need to focus on first."

"What's that..?" Marin asked, looking around.

"There are several blaster remotes hidden and waiting for my command. One will activate and start a routine when I say so. As you have probably seen for yourself, a bolt from a blaster is reflected off the lightsaber's blade. To keep the reflected shot from hitting non-combatants, an important technique to learn is to be able to willfully redirect that shot to a location of your choosing...either at the one who fired to an object that might give you the advantage if hit."

"To do this requires minute control of the blade, knowing the angle that it needs to be at to effectively send the shot where you want it. It takes time to learn, and much focus through the Force. I'll demonstrate for you at first."

"Okay..." Marin backed up a few steps but stayed close enough so that she could see how Andrea moved.

Andrea pulled a small control and activated the voice control for the remotes. "Four remotes...level 5 difficulty, random pattern.... _activate_."

There was a low hum and four remotes from different locations appear around the two of them. Andrea stood there calm with her hands to her sides as she lowered herself into the Force and began to focus on the exercise at hand.

Marin studied the remotes for a moment, but it was Andrea's sense in the Force that drew her attention. Slowly, Marin opened herself to the Force, taking in the clearing and everything in it as Master Karrde had taught her to. She could feel the faint ripples as the remotes moved.

The first shot came from the remote to Andrea's left, with the one in front of her firing just a short moment later. The Jedi's hand went to her lightsaber just a fraction of time before the first shot and ignited its brilliant green blade as she whirled to her right, into the first shot. She swung her blade as if it was part of the same motion as drawing it and sent the first shot back into the remote, causing it to shut down and go back to its holding station. Not pausing in the moment, she had continued her spin, whirling the blade over her head and brought it down as she had finished turning to face Marin, blade angled to out and to her right to intercept the second shot and sent it into the remote that was off to Marin's right now. 

The other remaining remotes, one behind Andrea and the other behind Marin, began to circle around in a random pattern before they would fire again. The one behind Marin had circled to her right side before shifting suddenly back towards her and fired. Andrea spun on her right heel and extended her blade out in front of her to intercept and deflect the shot, hitting the remote. The one that was now behind her fired at the same moment and she only raised her blade up and over to where it was pointed down behind her head and caught the shot to hit her target and end the sequence. All four remotes were hit and had returned to their stations.

Marin stared, wide-eyed. She'd seen how fast Andrea had moved, but she'd felt the shift, too. She'd heard _buir_ call it battle mind once - a clarity that comes in the midst of battle.

Andrea breathed in deeply as she shut down her blade and looked to Marin.

"That," she told her, "did have a little touch of Ataru in it with my spin on the last move. But you get a general idea."

Marin nodded, a faint smile touching her lips. She kept finding parallels, and it helped her make sense of things. "I... felt it, too..."

"We'll keep it simple for your first time trying this," Andrea said as she moved to sit on one of the rocks and let Marin take the center of the clearing. She lifted up the control again and spoke into it, "One remote....level 1difficulty, stationary....activate."

A single remote appeared directly in front of Marin and hovered there. "It'll hold steady till I direct it to do otherwise," Andrea told her. "And it will fire randomly. Draw yourself into the Force, get a feel for the remote. Try to act more on instinct and what you feel through the Force instead of watching for the remote to fire."

Marin nodded and closed her eyes, reaching out to the remote in the Force. She didn't so much feel it. More she felt the sort of blank spot where it was in the Force. She still held Souvrin's lightsaber in her left hand. She took a few moments to calm herself and center again as she had been taught. She felt Andrea a few feet away, and the empty spot where the remote was. Her fingers flexed briefly on the hilt as she waited, her breathing slow and even.

As during the time in the Karrde's training circle, Marin began to feel a faint ripple. Not of movement, but a warning. Her grip tightened slightly around the hilt as she brought it up, thumbing the blade to life. The ripple was stronger now. Still, she kept her eyes closed as she tried to rely only on her senses. She moved one step to the left, just as she felt a pulse from the remote. Keeping Andrea's location in her mind, Marin brought the blade up to block. It was a tad sloppy, and the block went a bit wide, sending the blaster bolt off to her right. Marin sighed slightly but took her stance again. She knew she wouldn't get it on the first try, for she was still getting used to the saber.

Andrea kept watching intently. For the first attempt, she came closer than most of the students that she had seen. It just took time.

Marin let out a breath as she settled herself again, the glowing blade held in front of her. Again, she felt the faint ripple... off to her left this time. She waited, breathing slowly. And there was the pulse again. She spun to her left, bringing the blade up even with her ear before she dropped the tip. The downward sweep of the blade caught the bolt, sending it off behind her.

"Hmmm," Andrea said as she started to rub her chin. "How are you focusing to direct your blade to intercept?"

Marin frowned. "I... feel the direction of the pulse as the shot is fired." she shrugged.

"Okay," Andrea said as she nodded and thought on it. "Try to blend in seeing where you're feeling the shot going with the thought and intent of sending it back along the same line. It may sound vague, but sometimes just having the thought and intent will help with the Force guiding your blade to where it needs to be."

Marin chewed her lip for a moment. "Alright..." She nodded and set herself again.

This time, the remote was back in front of her. She closed her eyes again, feeling for that blank spot again as she noted Andrea's location. Her breathing slowed a bit, and her fingers flexed around the hilt. And there again was the ripple, followed by the pulse. An instant later, Marin felt the hot tingle of warning. She waited a couple more seconds, then she dropped the tip of her blade. pulling her left leg back as she did so. The bolt hit the glowing blade and rebounded. It... _almost_ got the remote.

Andrea started to smile as she saw the result of the effort.

Marin frowned slightly, but her eyes remained closed. She had to keep her focus. She set herself again, bringing the blade back to a ready position. It wasn't long before she felt another ripple. It was followed mere seconds later by another pulse. Marin spread her stance slightly, presenting a slightly narrower target to the remote as she felt the bolt speeding towards her. This time, she cranked her wrist over, the blade almost parallel to the ground. She felt the bolt impact the blade.... and then the ripples were gone. Slowly, she opened her eyes.

"Well done," Andrea told her as the remote went back to its station. "A good first attempt."

Marin nodded, a smile tugging at her lips. It wasn't a simple thing to do, but she was starting to get the hang of it.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  _Buir_ \- Father/Mother  
>  _Lek_ \- Yeah  
>  _Me'ven?_ \- Huh?

"I don't know how far in-depth my father has gone with you in particular into what is normally referred to as the dark side," Andrea said to her. For the discussion they were having, she had chosen a small area of the forests near the royal castle where a waterfall sounded as part of the river that flowed nearby. It was always soothing to her when she rested here and she and Edward came here often. Hoping that it would prove to be a peaceful setting for some of their talks.

Marin chewed on her lip for a moment as she fiddled with Jarius' tags. "He hasn't really.... except for what happened after _buir_ was killed..."

"I guess it would help to give the history to what I wanted to talk about then," she told Marin as they sat there. "Since the Order began, there has been a philosophy that the Force had two 'sides' to it; the light side and the dark side...I suppose you could say they were concerned with the 'moral compass' of the Force. The light side is thought to be aligned with compassion, selflessness...healing, mercy...self-knowledge, and enlightenment. Many felt that the dark side was the element aligned with hate, fear, anger.... aggression, jealousy. You can probably see where those two ideas lay."

Marin nodded as she considered that for a moment. "What of a.... middle way? Something has to balance out. Too much Light and one is blinded, Too much Darkness and one becomes lost..." she said as she thought of her father's view of things, and how Xan and Callista tended to handle things... from what little she knew of them.

"If there was any lesson to be learned from Rhen Var and Msst," Andrea began to say. "It was that there always must be a balance...in all things. What my father always believes; and what I believe as well, is that there isn't any particular 'side' to the Force itself. It is all about the intention that is in a person's heart that shows themselves as evil or good. It hasn't always been a popular view. In fact, it had been disapproved of by the old Jedi Order."

Marin nodded again. Andrea's words reminded her of what Ethan had said so long ago when they'd first discussed it. "Do you think, if I'd gone to Chandrilla.... that they would have insisted I conform to their idea of a _Jetii_?"

"Most likely," Andrea told her. "Father's views aren't held by many in the Order still. To his thinking and mine, the Force flows through all life. The only dark side comes from humanity's corruption in their hearts. Truly, even with those that can't touch the Force, good and evil are decided in the heart. Even the members of the Sith were innocent in their hearts when they were first living."

"It makes a lot of sense, actually. _Buir_ always thought that way too. It would be strange if people were...predestined for a path." She shrugged. " _Buir_ always taught me to make my choices based on what felt right here...." she touched her chest. "Not because someone else said it was..."

"It's true." Andrea looked out over the waterfall. "Many times, doing the right thing meant going against orders. And don't just think of what I've said as the only way to think on it. There are all kinds of different thoughts about the Force...and I'm sure to the ones who believe it, they think it is the 'only' way. The Sith will tell you that being selfless is another name for weakness. The Aing-Tii believe that those that can use the Force are not strictly good and evil, but have their place in a larger plan of things...even that the Force can show itself in different ways and allow unique abilities beyond imagination."

She lowered her head a moment and smiled in thought. "I can actually personally attest to that particular train of thought."

Marin raised an eyebrow at the last sentence. "How do you mean?"

Andrea looked at her with a smile and started to tell the story. "Master Myk Ron Dinn had just returned to us. Apparently, he had been in a hibernation state for a long time...just before the end of the Yuuzhan Vong invasion, actually. He returned just before the massive battles that were fought at Rhen Var and at Endor."

Marin's eyes widened and she barely stifled a surprised curse. " _How_...?"

"That, I'm still not completely sure.... and I was sitting there during his explanation. But that isn't the reason I started to tell you this story. One of the Jedi that fought at Rhen Var, who was actually on the High Council, had experienced a brush with.. shall we say, more aggressive thoughts...during a mission to rescue Callista from a group of Sith shortly before the battle. He was still dealing with it to a degree when the battle on Rhen Var begun. His wife was a pilot for the New Republic and was fighting with General Arie Dinn and myself over Endor. With me so far?"

" _Lek_..." Marin replied, listening closely.

"Kate...," Andrea told her, lowering her head in silent memory, "his wife, was my wingmate during the fight. We got separated for just a moment when the enemy suddenly singled her out and completely destroyed the mobile suit she was flying."

"They.... destroyed it...?" Marin's voice carried the shock she felt at the statement... as well as the ripples she'd felt from Andrea. Marin chewed her lower lip, remembering the first... and _only_ time she'd seen one...

"They were using them as well," Andrea answered. "The master...Ainar Algeron...felt her death from the other side of the galaxy on Rhen Var. He had been single-handed facing several Sith warriors while father and Master Dinn battled with their leader outside the citadel. He completely gave into his anger when he felt that and killed all of the warriors there...saving a horrid death for the last one."

Marin swallowed. "I'm glad your _buir_ found me before I got that far...." her stomach twisted at the mere thought of what she could have done.

"I'm glad he did as well," she said with a smile. "He realized what he had done and ran off from Rhen Var... with my father and Myk Ron in close pursuit. They were actually able to get to Coruscant and the Jedi Temple before he arrived, and so they confronted him there. Myk Ron and my father could not get through to him. But...father couldn't kill his friend. And so, he got through to him the only other way he knew how...he dropped his defenses and Ainar struck him."

A soft gasp fell from Marin's lips. "How could he know that doing that would... help?" Marin frowned slightly, fiddling with her braid.

"I don't know. I suppose it was a sudden revelation through the Force that he received. When Ainar struck him...I don't know if it was because of how deep daddy had immersed himself into the Force or other reasons, but we all felt it. As soon as we felt it, we knew what had happened and Arie and I rushed for Coruscant."

Andrea wiped a tear from her eye for a moment. "If Myk Ron hadn't been there to try to start healing him...and then Arie, being a master healer, getting there when she had.... But it was what followed that surprised me most of all."

"What followed...?" Marin asked quietly, getting the sense it was rather significant. She reached out, and gently laid her hand on Andrea's arm, for she understood how she felt.

"Father's spirit hadn't returned to his body...it was still in the Force." Andrea surprised her by the next statement. "Using myself as an 'anchor', Myk and Arie were able to go and find him. But, and this is the point I wanted to make...when the two returned, they had changed. Honestly, they look now like they had years ago before the invasion was over."

" _Me'ven_....? But... how is that _possible_?!" Marin's forehead knit in a frown as she traced Jarius' tags with her thumb.

"We don't know," Andrea told her with another smile. "That's why I told you about the Aing-Tii's beliefs. The main point of what I was wanting to tell you is just that. There’s really no limit to the abilities of the Force. You're going to come across different beliefs about it, but the main point I wanted to emphasize was that whatever you do, whether you take the Jedi path, the Mando one...or both, keep your morals close to you. If you act with good and moral intent in your heart, you will never stray. Even going on the offensive isn't wrong when it is in defense of others, Marin, and not out of vengeance or malice."

She pondered that. " _Mando'ad_ vengeance isn't about revenge though. If the person is in the right frame of mind, that is...."

"Exactly so. One thing that I had been told that Jarius had done to one particular member.... when I heard what Ainar had done to that last Sith that was standing, it reminded me of it. It's always something to keep in mind..."

Marin flinched and nodded. "I didn't learn about it, from _buir_ , either..."

"Some things, sometimes," Andrea said as she started to stand. "Are better left being untold."


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  _mir'osik_ \- Shit for brains  
>  _hut'uun_ \- Coward, weakling  
>  _kyr'tsad_ \- Death Watch
> 
>  _Ar’krai_ – Ar'krai (also spelled ar'kai) was a state of genocidal war among the Bothans. The basic tenets of ar'krai state that if it was declared, all fit Bothans—and usually those that weren't—were required to volunteer for military service against an enemy that threatened the Bothans with extinction—and the Bothans were to repay the enemy in kind. The enemy was to be destroyed to the last individual in an act of speciecide, their name is wiped from history, and their homeworld would be ground to dust. In recorded Bothan history, ar'krai was declared only three times. The third was during the Yuuzhan Vong War, after the Fall of Coruscant and the sacrifice of the Bothan Borsk Fey'lya, President of the New Republic.
> 
> Ar'krai did not have a concept of ceasefire. Even ten years after the end of the war, Bothan fundamentalists were still attempting to locate Zonama Sekot and destroy the Yuuzhan Vong. The planet, however, remained safely hidden. Even into later years, the True Victory Party wished to carry out ar'krai and completely eradicate the Yuuzhan Vong. – Wookieepedia

“It is of no use,” The one to his left said as the three talked over the matter. “Galan is completely closed off to us now.”

“And so we lose a convenient waypoint to our outposts operating out of Ogen and our other storehouses along that route,” the one to his right pointed out. “All because of that _mir’osik_ wanted to get a single _Mando’ad_ out of the way.”

“We will deal with him when he arrives,” the third man finally said as another entered the room and looked to the three of them. “Yes, what is it?”

“Danos J’oran just arrived,” the new person told them at the door. “He’s on his way here now.”

“Tell him to get his _shebs_ in here,” the third man said as he waited…rather impatiently for the subject of their discussion to enter the room. Normally he had been very patient with J’oran. The man was a deadly warrior, one of his best, but he was hard to rein in on occasion. This issue with setting up a stopping point on Galan was one of them.

“Well,” Danos said as he entered the room and removed his helmet before he walked to the other three. “You do not have to worry about that _hut’uun_ snooping around trying to see what we’re up to any….”

That was as far as he got before he was backhanded so hard that it almost sent him to his knees. The three other were in _beskar’gam_ as well. The blow from the leader’s armored gloves cut his cheek, and J’oran put his hand to his face and drew it away to see the blood on his fingertips. “I hope,” he said now in a low growl as he rubbed his own blood on the glove with his thumb, “that you have a real good reason, _sir_ …because it’s going to be the only thing to keep you alive.”

“ _You mind your place,_ ” the other responded with a growl of his own, getting into J’oran’s face. “You got careless.”

“What are you talking about?” Danos said as he looked from him to the others. “He was alone… with no backup. So taking him out involved leveling one of our warehouses, what difference does that make? I _took him out_ , which is what you wanted.”

“I said _eliminate_ him, not draw everyone’s attention!”

Danos’s look prompted him to point to the first man and gestured him to report. “I had just come from Galan,” the man told J’oran. “Thanks to your actions, we’ve lost the waypoint you set up.”

“What do you mean, _lost_ it?”

“He means,” the third said, “that it is crawling with ships from the Cataani Royal Fleet.”

“So they put up the patrol ships they had….”

“Not patrol ships,” the first told him. “They have an entire _battlegroup_ in orbit with more ships offering to assist. Galan is effectively blockaded.”

Danos looked to this first man then back to his leader, who only nodded before he looked to the first again. “How? He had come alone.”

“I was able to get the information from the only other person you left behind,” the first told him. “The _only_ one left. There was a group that arrived several hours after you left Galan. Three of Durza’s fellow _Mando’ade_ arrived with another that looked young...possibly a trainee…and two _Jetiise_ were with them.”

 _That_ got J’oran’s attention as he looked to the others there. “The _Jetiise_ you speak of….”

“It was _him_ ,” his leader told him. “You knew Jarius Durza had been visiting Cataan on a regular basis for the last while that you had been following him. Who else could it have possibly been that wields a silver and blue lightsaber?”

  
“If Karrde was there,” J’anos said as he thought about it. “Then the _Mando’ade_ that was there must have been…”

“Correct,” the first told him. “Xan Qenadius, the _Jetii_ wife of his that has become one of them, and Ethan was with them.”

“And the fourth?” the third man asked as he looked to the other.

“I don’t know, I’ve never seen the color scheme, but the armor looked close to Jarius’s to almost have some influence from his.”  
  
“ _What_?” Danos asked as he looked at him and walked up close. “How close would you say?”

“ _Very_ close.”

“What are you thinking?” the leader asked him. Danos looked at him and thought about it. “There have been a few occasions where a young girl has been seen in his company on Cataan. He may have even adopted the girl perhaps….”  
  
“You can ponder on all of this till the galaxy collapses,” the second person finally said after holding it in for so long. “The point is you’ve completely ruined a viable location for us…and now we’ve got more attention than we wanted thanks to your…”

It was the excuse Danos J’oran wanted from the moment the leader of the group had backhanded him minutes ago. He swung so fast the man didn’t see it coming until it had already connected and sent him to his back on the floor. He started to rise and reach for a vibroblade, but saw J’oran’s already in his hand and setting up for a fight.

“ _Enough!_ ” the leader said as he stood between them, glaring at them both and waited for them to put their blades away before he continued. “You two can duel and try to kill each other later. Right now, we have the attention that is unwanted. _That_ needs taking care of.”

“Discouraging them is out of the question,” J’oran said. “There’s only one way to deal with those that showed up.”

“We cannot go against the _Jetiise_ ,” the first man added to this. “They are too great in number for us. The _Mando’ad_ e yes, but not if the _Jetiise_ join forces with them. And we already risk too much with the elements of Cataan’s navy. They’ve proven themselves formidable on the battlefield, as the Bothans have discovered twice over. If we go after Karrde…or his family, especially his _daughter_ , we risk having their entire armed forces against us. That is more firepower then we could ever repel, even during our most glorious moment.”

“Leave me to my thoughts,” the leader said as he waved for them to go. The next moves here were going to be delicate…they _had_ to be. Thanks to J’oran, the problem they now faced expanded as their enemies now might just multiply.

* * *

It had been a day since her last lesson with Andrea. Marin was taking advantage of the quiet time to practice her Teras Kasi, blending in some of the stances from Ataru. The air was warm on her skin as she moved slowly through the stances. She frowned slightly in concentration, mindful of her footing in the grass.

She'd taken one of the praxeum's training remotes. After another twenty minutes or so, she pulled the remote from her belt and used the controller to enter commands. _One remote. L_ _ow_ _power. S_ _tationary._ She needed the practice. It still frustrated her that she'd been… a bit sloppy on Galan. She knew some of that was technique, but it still bothered her. With a sigh, she tossed the remote into the air and began to sink into the Force, blocking one bolt after another.

In her expanded awareness, she felt a chill up her spine... and then white-hot anger.... aimed at _her_. Marin blinked in surprise, her distraction costing her as one of the bolts tagged her in the thigh. Marin hissed a curse, and worked to block out the pain, drawing her attention back to her task. But it nagged at her. _'Who would be so angry at her?'_

Elsewhere on the planet, Andrea had been tending to Ian and had him down for a nap and took the time to sit on the balcony of their quarters of the castle and had been in meditation while her son slept. Her senses stretched as she did so, she could feel many things around...even enough to tell that Marin had continued to practice what she had begun to teach her about Shien. 

But...there was this other sensation that seemed to hang around her...it was anger, but it wasn't coming from her padawan. Instead, it was directed towards her...and towards others including Andrea's sister, Callista. 

She came out of her meditation with more questions in her mind than she did going in. It may be something she would need to confer with her father about.

Marin's face was etched in a frown as she shut down Souvrin's lightsaber with a sigh. She'd spent a couple of hours practicing, and she couldn't shake that feeling from her mind. With a muffled curse, she shut down the remote and pocketed it again, before heading back to the praxeum. As she walked, she reached out to Andrea. _'Andrea.... can I talk to you if you aren't busy...?'_

 _'Come to the castle.'_ Andrea sent in response. _'Ian is sleeping. I'll alert the guards you’re coming.'_

Marin's eyes widened in surprise. _'Are you...?'_ She cut off that thought, mentally orienting herself to the village of Edmonton. _'I should change, but I can be there in an hour...'_ Marin withdrew slightly then, clipping Souvrin's saber to her belt before she took off at a run to the praxeum.

She jogged through the gates a few minutes later, waving to Ryneas as she spotted him near a couple of the horses. She called out to him, "Leave a mount for me, _vor'e_." and then she sprinted across the courtyard to the dormitory, taking the stairs to her room.

Once inside, she stripped out of her tunic and pants, tossing them in the direction of the laundry before she slipped into the 'fresher. Ten minutes later, she stepped back into her room, wringing the water from her hair as she toweled off. She'd only been to the castle once before when Andrea showed her where it was... but never alone.

A nervous flutter announced itself in her stomach as she pulled out one of the blue tunics with the Beviin sigil embroidered on the left chest, as well as black trousers. She dressed quickly, and braided her hair down her back, leaving her Padawan braid free. Then she pulled on her boots and her weapons belt, leaving the DE-10's on the table, and Souvrin’s lightsaber clipped to the belt. With one last check of her hair, she took the stairs to the courtyard where her mount waited.

"Where are you off to?" Ryneas asked out of curiosity more than anything else as he held the reins out for Marin. "As if I needed to ask, really..."

Marin grinned. "I wanted to talk to Andrea about something.... and she's at the castle..." Marin scuffed her toe a bit nervously as she took the reins and swung easily into the saddle. After two years of practice, she could do it without thinking.

Ryneas nodded at this and motioned that he was fine with it, not that it was his decision to make. "Do I need to let Jarod know in case he asks?"

"Please. I'm not sure how long I'll be gone." Marin smiled and reached out to grip Ryneas' arm before she clicked her tongue and turned her horse towards the gate.

She looked back and waved to Ryneas before she turned to the trail. The ride down the mountain was quiet, and Marin used the time to try and center herself. It wasn't easy, for the feeling nagged at her. She passed the Karrde home, continuing on towards the village of Edmonton at the base of Mt. Adan. Twenty minutes later, she reached the castle gate, drawing her mount to a stop. "Padawan Durza to see H... Master Andrea Karrde, please...." She noticed the faint frown of the gate sentry at that, but Marin shrugged mentally. She never could remember Andrea's formal title, so she fell back on addressing her as a student should.

"We were told to expect you," the guard said as he looked down the to the other side. "Open the gate!"

"Open the gate!" was heard further down the wide corridor. 

"Go on ahead, padawan," the guard said with a bow of his head.

[ _Thank you...._ ] Marin said firmly in Cataani, with a polite nod before she guided her horse down the long arched corridor. The horse's strides echoed as the metal horseshoes struck the stone. The corridor was cool and dim, causing Marin to blink a few times as she exited into the inner courtyard and looked around a moment.

The guards directed her to their quarters and Andrea was there at the door waiting as Marin approached the corridor. 

"Come on inside," she invited to her as she gestured towards their living quarters.

Marin flushed slightly and nodded, stepping softly over the threshold and into the room. She looked around, taking in the room for a moment.

"Please, have a seat.”

With a nod, Marin sank gratefully into the offered chair. It was well-cushioned, and for a moment, she was afraid it might swallow her. At the thought, she tried... and failed to stifle a giggle. "Apologies, Master," Marin said when she'd gotten her giggles under control. "There was something I wanted to talk to you about."

"I think I felt it too," Andrea said as she sat down. "A feeling of anger?"

Marin nodded, chewing nervously on her lip as she fiddled with her Padawan braid. "It was strong.... and directed at me. Whoever it was is _very_ angry. I have no idea why..."

"And it wasn't just directed at you," her master said from across the table and poured a cup of tea for them both. "I felt it in meditation...directed towards Callista and a few others. I think it may be directed at all of you that went to Galan."

Marin swallowed, biting back a curse as she tried to remember her manners. "What can we do? Who would be so angry?" She stopped a moment and thought, her eyes widening. "What if.... it's _Kyr'tsad_...?"

"Don't jump to conclusions," Andrea told her calmly. "They may know about what happened...I don't think they would attack openly here on Cataan. Not even the Bothans tried that years ago when part of their fleet declared _ar'krai_ on us."

Marin frowned. "Regardless.... someone isn't happy. And from what you said, it sounds like _Kyr'tsad_." She shrugged. "Is there any way we can find out... anything we can do?"

"I've already sent a personal message to Callista and I'm going to be going to the house after Ian wakes up and talk with father. He'll probably try to get in touch with Ethan. Chances are, he may have felt this in meditation as well.” Andrea offered her a cup of tea to help her relax some and shifted to cross her legs as she sipped on her own cup.

She accepted the cup and took a slow sip, trying to breath out her agitation. "It.... startled me rather badly..." Marin admitted after a moment, rubbing her arm where the bolts from the remote had stung her.

Andrea nodded at this and sipped her cup. "I am glad you came to me to talk about it," she told her padawan. "This is a major concern, but you do not need to let it rule your thoughts while you are training. It'll distract you, as you already know."

Marin sighed. "I'm trying to focus again..."

"Good. You can stay here for a while and we can talk. Once Ian wakes up, I'll be at my parents to talk to father and get his thoughts on this."

Marin nodded and sipped at her tea. It wasn't _behot_ , but it was soothing nonetheless. "I've not felt something that strongly since.... _buir_ died..." she said quietly.

"It is only a guess, but if it is _kyr'tsad_ ," Andrea used the _mando’a_ term for Death Watch. "I wonder if it is the same one that lured him into that trap."


	4. Chapter 4

They had stayed and talked about different things for the better part of a few hours until Ian had woken up. Andrea took care of him and saw to making sure he was changed before they started to ride towards her parents’ house, the guard following behind them. Andrea and her mother shared hugs and Jade picked Ian up in a waiting hug.

"Where's daddy at?" Andrea asked her after all the pleasantries were extended. "We need to see about talking to him."

"He's meditating in the garden," Jade answered as she held Ian.

Andrea looked at Marin and invited her to follow, starting to go through the kitchen and went to one of the doors that would lead to the back yard of the house. It opened out onto a patio area that was at a slightly higher elevation than the front of the house. There were tiles laid out over the ground around the porch of the house. 

Beyond that were the beginnings of a massive garden with three paths leading further into the vegetation. There was a slight mist in the air that told Andrea that the environmental system was doing its usual watering of the various plant life. "I think this is your first time to see this part of the house," she said in passing to Marin as she let her take in the new scenery.

Marin nodded quietly, her gaze sweeping the grounds as she took it all in. The gardens were well laid out, and she could tell they were well cared for. The whole area had a calming feel to it, much like the praxeum. The moist air caused her tunic to cling to her slightly as she moved. It was as she looked around that she picked up the faint sound of flute music.

Andrea heard it too as the started down the path. "He's meditating," she told Marin. "He's been caring for the garden here since before I was born. I know where we'll find him."

"It's peaceful..." Marin said softly as she looked around. Her steps were quiet as she moved through the grass beside Andrea. "It's ...beautiful... I heard it once before.." Marin said softly as the notes from the flute got slightly louder as they came upon the waterfall.

“Not the exact same one you heard before." Andrea smiled as she told her that. "The Force guides his music when he's meditating. What you heard that time will never be heard again."

They came into the bit of clearing that was at the waterfall Steffan had created. He was sitting on one of the rocks around the flow of the water, eyes closed as he continued to play during his meditation. The notes were soft, but there seemed to be an undertone of concern in them now. Andrea sat on another rock close by and closed her eyes as she listened to the music.

With a glance towards Andrea, Marin sank slowly to the grass in a meditative pose, letting the music flow around her like the sounds of the waterfall. Yes, it was different. But it still pulled at her. With a sigh, Marin let her eyes fall closed as she slowed her breathing and tried to center herself.

The music continued for some time. When Andrea heard the last of it, she opened her eyes and saw that her father was already looking to her and towards Marin. "Well, two young ladies wanting to visit this old Jedi," he said with a smile for just a moment. "I take it...that what I felt earlier wasn't for just me alone."

"I believe so," Andrea said as she looked to Marin and back to him. "It was...intense, to say the least."

Slowly, Marin opened her eyes and looked across to Master Karrde, nodding. "I felt it very strongly, Master. As if the person were close by... that's how strong it was..." She shuddered slightly as the feeling it had left in the pit of her stomach as she smoothed her tunic.


	5. Chapter 5

“Colonel,” Steffan began to say as he got up from his chair in the living room of their house and walked over to greet their guest that had just arrived. “Thank you for being able to accept my invitation.”

“The least I could do, Master Karrde,” Colonel Taylon of the Cataani Royal Marines answered as they shook hands in the way that warriors would. Steffan gestured for him to have a seat and poured him some tea that Jade had set for them before he had arrived.

“Thank you,” Taylon said as he sipped. “I was surprised to get your invitation, actually. I assumed that there was something that you probably needed to discuss with me about our training schools…or something along those lines.”

“It wasn’t my main thought, but I welcome the discussion along with it,” Steffan said as he took a drink and leaned back. “I had been pondering some things while I was meditating earlier when I felt a powerful feeling of aggression in the Force. I should say that my daughter and her new student felt it as well.”

“I had heard that Her Highness took young Marin Durza under her wing as her… padawan, as you call it?” he saw Steffan nod to answer that question. “Was it something concerning her…or circumstances surrounding Jarius’s death?”

“I believe so,” the jedi told him. “And there was a name mentioned when Jarius received the call that led him to Galan.”

Steffan hesitated for a moment. “Does the name Danos J’oran mean anything to you?”

He could tell that it had an immediate impact, Taylon had straightened and the master Jedi could feel the sudden rush of recognition and anger coming off the colonel.

“ _That name…_ ” Taylon grumbled under his breath.

“Please Colonel,” Steffan said as he leaned forward to ease his thoughts. “Take your time. This is important.”

The Marine nodded and gathered his memories up before he started to tell Steffan about it. “Danos was part of our unit years ago,” Taylon started to tell him. “Not in Jarius’s squad, but another squad’s sharpshooter. He and Jarius had an altercation with Jarius bringing up charges of conduct unbecoming as well as information of actions that Danos took that were borderline to cold-blooded murder.”

“I think I heard about some of this,” Steffan said as he thought about it now.

“Something, if I remember right, about a Marine unit that was attached to assist a New Republic unit in a territorial dispute on the Outer Rim. There had been tensions already and the arrival of the units as diplomatic security sparked some rioting…. with people hurt.”

“Danos J’oran’s doing,” Taylon said. “There was a group that we thought was scouting around. Our sharpshooters are taught just like any other unit: shoot to kill. He started to shoot to wound.”

“What?!” Steffan said, surprise on his face. That a Cataani warrior, especially a Marine, thinking of taking action like that was, while possible, something that was totally unthinkable.

“That was my reaction when Jarius brought him up on the charges. Danos had shot the last guy in line and left the man wounded, waiting for him to call out his teammates then took all of them out. Jarius heard the first shot and called over the radio net asking who fired and why was the movement not reported. He got no answer and so he went to check it out.”

“And that’s when he saw J’oran picking off the other members of that scouting party,” Steffan finished. If he remembered the rest of what he had heard correctly, there was a formal board of review into the actions of what happened. The end result was Danos J’oran’s dishonorable discharge from the service and several years of a prison sentence. It also had the added effect of his family distancing themselves from him, which added to how he felt.”

“All of that happening,” Steffan began to say as he sipped his drink. “It would have made him an eager candidate for Death Watch to recruit him, as they would want someone with his skill set.”

“The Death Watch?” Taylon asked him. “I have heard of them in passing, but no more than that. Are they the ones responsible for what happened on Galan?”

“Yes....and it makes me think of other things,” Steffan said as he leaned forward and poured another cup. “Jarius said that Danos was the one that approached him about joining up with Death Watch…then claimed responsibility for the death of his wife and unborn daughter. From what you have told me, I’m beginning to think…”

“…that he knew Jarius wouldn’t accept,” Taylon finished. “And just gave Danos the opening he wanted, as if he needed it, to murder his family.”

Steffan leaned back and thought long and hard on it. “And I would wager many credits to think that he may know about Marin now as well.”


End file.
